


Explanation of light

by Bora_H



Category: Original Work
Genre: Alternate Universe - Criminals, Alternate Universe - Urban Fantasy, Asexual Character, Crimes & Criminals, How Do I Tag, I Tried, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, London, London Underground, Magic, Magic and Science, Magical Realism, Math and Science Metaphors, Mathematics, Multi, My First AO3 Post, Original Character(s), Original Fiction, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Science Fiction & Fantasy, Tags Are Hard, Tags May Change, Urban Fantasy, Urban Legends
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-30
Updated: 2020-11-30
Packaged: 2021-03-10 02:40:27
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,147
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27797080
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bora_H/pseuds/Bora_H
Summary: London, 2020.Magic has a scientific explanation, but that does not make the society to accept people who have access to it any more willingly.Tessa is a girl like any other, trying to focus on her university education and suffering her way through house parties Nina, her best friend since they were young, drags her to. She is not special. She does not need to think about the research of magic or what happened to the small boy from her childhood after the test showed he is a cogni-physical.One late night walk home can change everything.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello all, 
> 
> I haven't written anything in ages (since high school really, so ages indeed), but an idea came and you know how it goes.  
> I hope you will enjoy the story! If you do, I would be more than glad if you could take a second to let me know what you think. If you don't, please let me know as well, so I can work on it and bring you better stories next time. 
> 
> Also, English is not my first language, so please accept my apologies for the bad grammar. :)

“Are you drunk?”

The party around them was in a full flow. Young girls of age carefully hidden by their make-up were flowing from the kitchen to mingle with the crowd in a living room or maybe to take a few breaths of fresh air on a balcony. If you count a winter air full of cigarette smoke for a s fresh air at least.

“I am moderately functional,” smiled over her own response one of the girls, stopping on her way to join the fun looking somewhere undisclosed. If one would be just passing by, they might even think she is alone and talking to the wall.

Second girl hidden by shadows of stairs above her answered with an unimpressed glare. She herself was holding a plastic cup but unlike her friend still grinning over her witty response, she held it more like something she would prefer not to touch with a 10-meter pole.

“I will take that as a no then.”

A finger in the air let her know that her more party-enthusiastic friend will be with her in a moment, just after she will finish her plastic cup of memory loss. “Now T,” she said while her eyes here looking for a refill. “You need to chill.”

The music was loud but not alarmingly so, here, in their small corner near the stairs. Still, the mass of people was emitting a heat which was as pleasant as having a reptile sneaking around your neck. What a time to be alive and young.

“How are you getting home, Nina?”

There was a clash followed by a laugh loud enough to overpower the beat. Tessa’s bet was on that vintage vase she saw on a coffee table when they did their introductory circle at the beginning of the evening.

“I’m staying with Nick, I told you.”

Nick was Nina’s on-and-off boyfriend of two years. They were, according to Nina, a cute couple when things were good, which was, according to Tessa, not very often. Just the thought of her not-drunk friend staying with him did not sit right with Tessa, but it was an argument had and lost thousand times.

“Don’t start. I am.”

Tessa gave her phone another longing stare, checking what time it is. 30 minutes before midnight.

“I will go,” she said more to herself than to Nina.

Nina was visibly itching to join the crowd in the living room, to dance with her boyfriend and to enjoy the night as she promised Tess this very morning when begging her to come with. “Do you have to? We are having fun, right?”

Tess just nodded without listening, her social energy-meter was at low and the idea of long way home did not make her want to stay any more than the radioactive substance in the red cup. She abandoned the cup at the stairs above her with knowledge that trash bins are distributed in this house even worse than in the downtown.

“Want to catch the last bus home.”

This seems to snap Nina to full attention. No matter how much alcohol, friends take care of each other and one of the main rules is that you do not let your girlfriend want at night alone.

“You are most definitely not taking bus alone at home at night. No discussion, T. If you want to leave, you are getting taxi or something.”

Tessa did not have the best experience with taking taxies, but she had to agree. One never knows who they will meet on a street of London but should expect the worst.

“We don’t want some cognis to kill you, right?”

Tessa just chuckled. It was an overused phase between them, not exactly funny but familiar enough to put her at ease from the growing unwillingness to be outside. She wasn’t a fan of night regardless of streetlamps being everywhere in a city. “One doesn’t need to be able to move the earth, to kill me, Nina. Normal strength would do just as well.”

“Hush,” Nina was already taking out her phone and searching for a correct app. It was well-known between the two friends that Tess never bought data for her phone. “You are getting taxi.”

…

Standing outside Tessa was more than glad when she saw the headlights of her ride turning to the street. They stood outside together with Nina for just over a minute, but the cold has already found a way through her thin jacket. Nina’s lips would be probably blue by now if not covered in a thick layer of lip gloss. 

“Text me when you get home,” recited Nina the phrase. They always did. Being a girl does that to you.

“Will do.”

The car was most probably red in a day light but under the orange lights of streetlamps looked more rusted that anything else. The window rolled down. Behind a when sat a middle-aged guy, as tired looking as one might expect at this hour.

“Collins to Canary Wharf?” he asked to confirm the ride.

Collins wasn’t Tessa’s surname but Nina’s. Given the situation though, there wasn’t a reason to correct him.

“Yes, hello. Good evening.”

The back doors opened under her hand the warmth of the car was a welcomed change after the chilly night air. Nina waived at her, looking ready to get back inside. “Text me,” her lips mimicked before the car started. 

London at night is a vision. Light and views and people, all mixed into one artwork of colors behind the car window. The driver had a radio on and the show hosts were chatting the night away on some topic Tessa did not catch. She thought back to the party instead. How excited people seem to be there, how loud they got. Maybe Nina was right, and Tessa just needs to relax and stop thinking so hard. Enjoy the live, as she always said. Deep down Tessa knew that partying the night away will never be here idea of relaxing. She was just top the type. Maybe she could though …

‘’... are right. Mark. The PM will need to soon take a firm stance. These attacks are the last straw and elections are just around a corner. “

Something in the radio tore her thoughts away and listen.

“What were they taking about? Something about attacks,” her inner voice followed the discussion of the hosts. “What attacks?”

The radio was too quiet for her to hear full sentences as the car accelerated through an intersection.

“…cogni-physical citizens … control measures … it is indeed terrible.”

“Cogni-physical citizens,” Tessa thought. “Of course, they would talk about them. It’s the night show in the end, they need dirt.”

Cogni-physical citizen is a new appropriate term used for people with abilities to manipulate energy in a way unavailable to most human beings. There are no longer legends, witches or saints as they were regarded in history, but they were no closer to be generally accepted as normal people. Most of a time, one didn’t hear about them. Most people never met one. If there wasn’t a test performed at every child when they are around 6 years old, one could almost guess they don’t exist.

Tessa, Nina and their class from the primary school were one of the very little people who did not have that luxury of pretense. There was a boy in their class. He was a scrawny boy if a little shy one who borrowed Tessa his pencils when she forgot hers at home. Tessa did not remember much about him, other than that red pencil which colored much better than her own.

The test didn’t hurt, there was the same tale as there always is when she was getting vaccination. “There is a little bee,” the nice young doctor said when she took a vial of Tessa’s blood. It didn’t hurt and the plaster she got was pretty.

Few days nothing happened. Then the boy did not come to class, nor the day after or the day after.

The teacher told them that Nathan, that was his name, was found different during the test and will not continue with them in their class. “There is a different school for him to go to,” miss Smith said with the same kind smile she was announcing them that it’s time for a break.

They didn’t spoke about Nathan after that, were not allowed to, but the knowledge that there indeed was a school for kids who were found different stayed with Tessa.

“What does it mean?” she tried to ask miss Smith few times, but the teacher, who was otherwise happy to answer any question, was quiet.

There were thousands of versions of description of what could these people actually do. Starting from kids horror stories about monsters who could make your blood boil, through historical documents on Discovery channel about the torture hundreds of people went through during the war-induced search for super soldiers, ending with scientific papers using so much science jargon is did not seem to be in English anymore. There was of course a whole cult of pop-culture around them, young adult novels about handsome sad boys falling for a girl, videogames, merch, and so much more but it did make them seem more like a legend than to normalize them for a general population. All those action movies did not look like something the nice boy who shared his pencils with Tessa could be part of.

“… miss Collins?”

The driver was talking to her.

“Yes, sorry. What were you saying?” Tessa tried for a polite smile.

“I said there is a car crash in front of us. It will take a while,” he had a warm uncle-like voice but his frustration with his day was clearly hearable. “We are kinda stuck here, miss.”

Just now Tessa realized they are indeed not moving and there is an unrest outside the window. Rain started falling.

“Where exactly are we?”

“Limehouse, miss. Just near the St. James gardens,”

That is not more than 20 minutes of walk and some bus stops on a way. She looked outside the window again, raindrops making their way down on a glass.

“You can stop here, it’s not far from me.”

The driver did not look pleased by the thought of not getting the full fee but based on his nervous drumming on the steering wheel he did not care enough to argue. “Sure, miss,” he muttered and pressed few buttons on his call. “Have a nice evening.”

Tessa was halfway out of the car when she said: “You too.”

The cold outside was unmerciful. It bit into her shoulders right away and the rain smeared her glasses she put on in the car. Seeing where she’s going made her feel much better.

Looking around, she indeed was not far. The street in front of her was lit up by the blue police lights and voices were unsettlingly loud in a quiet night air. Tessa pulled her coat closer to her body to keep the warmth in. She started walking.

Night London was not scary per se, at least not as much as some other cities she visited, but something about the long shadows and dark corners made her jumpy. From where she was, the smartest way home was to follow the main road and then joint he promenade around the Thames. All will be alright. There was just one thing, which made Tessa feel uncomfortable to the point of feeling nauseous - the park. Don’t get Tessa wrong, she loved nature. But there is a tremendous difference between walking under gentle green trees on a warm Sunday afternoon and walk through the park when the barks of trees looked like giant’s tombstones.

It was even slightly worse than she expected. Sporadic rain made the remaining leaves on the tree’s branches sounds like a whispers and occasional sounds from the main street made Tessa look over her shoulder few too many times. She counted steps, a habit she got after moving to London. Numbers made her brain quiet down a little bit.

A movement in a corner of her eye made her stop mid-step.

Peripheral vision is a defence mechanism which humans used thousands of years. It doesn’t focus on colors or details or even clear shapes. Its only purpose is to notify of a movement and raise an alarm. Alarm which almost always equals to the same thing.

Danger.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> St. James's Gardens was used as a burial ground by the Parish of St. James, Piccadilly between 1789 and 1853. The Metropolitan Burial Act of 1852 was passed to prevent burials within built up areas so the burial ground was closed and became a public garden in 1887.
> 
> The rain kept falling and Tessa was not alone.

St. James's Gardens was used as a burial ground by the Parish of St. James, Piccadilly between 1789 and 1853. The Metropolitan Burial Act of 1852 was passed to prevent burials within built up areas so the burial ground was closed and became a public garden in 1887.

The rain kept falling. The part, seemingly separated from the main street just few steps away, certainly did feel to Tessa like a cemetery it was years ago. Adrenalin was flowing through her veins, pricking her skin as with thousands of tiny needles. She should run. “Run,” her brain screamed at her, but as a deer caught in headlights, she kept standing.

The night was chilly, rain kept falling. Not enough to create a sound barrier but enough to make everything around Tessa dripping with movement.

The movement returned, she felt it more than saw. There, near the flickering light of a lamp. Two men. Tessa couldn’t see details, nor hear the argument they were in a middle of based on their body language. Both were tall, taller than Tessa at least. The bigger one was wearing a huge dark jacket and kept gesticulating in wide movements towards the other one. His smaller companion was still. He was also dressed in dark colours, maybe brown. She stepped away few steps, so he was directly under the cone of light.

His face was hidden under a hood of his coat.

They seem to continue in the argument, but the aerie silence was all Tessa could hear over the loud drumming of her own heart. Could they hear her?

The smaller one grabbed something in an inner pocket of him coat and pulled out a gun, which he swiftly pointed at the other man. For a brief moment all was still.

Tessa ran.

All happened so quick, that before she took two breaths, Tessa had her mobile out and dialling 999. There were not even three beeps before a calm voice answered:

“999, what’s your emergency?”

“He shot him! He was standing there… and he just …”

“Breath with me. Are you somewhere safe now?”

“I … I think so? I run.”

“Tell me what your name is and what is your location,” the voice was professional, calming but with an edge of urgency which made Tessa to focus. “My name is Tessa Rhodes. I am at the St. James Gardens in London. I mean in Limehouse, London.”

Was breathing always this hard? A tinny part of her brain was trying to focus on a fact that she should work out more but the adrenalin throbbing in her vein did not let her to voice out her thoughts. He shot him.

“Good, Tessa, now breathe with me. I am sending the nearest police officers your way. Can you tell me where exactly are you, so they can find you? Can you see a street sign?”

Tessa looked around her. She run into a garage opening. World around her was quiet, no steps coming her way just a few cars passing in a parallel street. There was a potted plant, one of those one would expect in front of a villa, a fence from wooden plans on the other side.

“Bekesbourne street,” she could read over the fogged glasses which due to some miracle still sat on her nose.

“Good. Stay where you are, Tessa. The police car is 5 minutes away, they will find you, ok?”

Tessa no longer listened, the hand which was holding the phone fell as if made from a metal instead of flesh. She just saw a person get shot. The second man, she was sure he got shot.

“This cannot be happening.”

Tessa realized she is crying. Silent tears running down her face and snots making it hard to breath. Sitting down on a cold ground, she watched the cars to run by her in a distance on the main street. How could they just drive by when she just saw a person get shot?

Blue lights made her eyes hurt. They flashed the same way the improvised disco ball did at the party she left what felt like ages ago. She was supposed to wait for someone here. They would get her.

“Tessa Rhodes? Miss?”

The last thing Tessa saw before the darkness took were two figures in dark uniforms walking briskly towards her.

She woke up disoriented, not sure whether she just blinked or blacked out. The bright light made her eyes hurt. She was sitting in a police car, half laying on the back seat.

“Easy there. How are you feeling?”

A stocky man wearing a dark blue police uniform was sitting on her right, left arm mid-movement to catch her is she needed to as she sat up. The bright light was a flashlight of his colleague shining their way.

“Are you Tessa Rhodes? You called an emergency police line?”

Tessa’s brain kicked into higher gear. She called police. Why did she call police? The park, man with a gun.

“I am Tessa.”

“Hello, Tessa. I am officer Smith, and this is my colleague Corbyn,” his smile was clearly rehearsed and practised, useful when helping kids to find a way and dragging cats down the trees. It did not make Tessa to feel any less of the edge.

“What happens now?”

The one who introduced himself as officer Smith shot a quick look to his colleagues.

“Well, Tessa,” he started. “You will go it us and then tell us exactly what you saw. Then we will see.”

“Did you catch him? The one with a gun?”

More uneasy looks and rehearsed smiles. Now when Tessa’s eyes got used to the direct light, she could see that the other officer was a tall lady, maybe double the age Smith was.

“Tessa,” her voice had a comforting quality to it which made Tessa queasy. “Out colleagues are not in the park, doing their job, but we are here to take you to the police station. They will make sure you are alright, call your parents and get your testimony, alright?”

“You cannot call my parents; they would be too worried.”

“Alright, we can talk about it on a station, alright? Now, how do you feel? Does anything hurt?”

Tessa could just shake her head. Nothing hurt her, she didn’t feel anything. Based on the fact she was shivering; she was probably cold.

“Alright, hun. Just get your seat belt and we will go, alright?”


End file.
